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Book Review: Help Baby Sleep

When I first became a mom, nearly (gulp) 10 years ago, one of the sagest pieces of advice my mom gave me was, "If the baby wants to sleep, then LET HIM SLEEP!!!!" This was quickly followed by, "and if you can sleep while he sleeps then DO IT." That worked out well because this particular position was his favorite, and sometimes only sleep position.

Also popular was:

Which of course is the only way you are NOT supposed to let your baby sleep. Except that the first time I gave in and let him sleep on his tummy - complete with me hovering outside his nursery after having removed every thing in his crib that could restrict his airway, he slept for 2 hours. TWO WHOLE HOURS. Guess how he slept on his back?

Yup, exactly like that. Every time. I maybe got 45 min of solid sleep time for the first couple of months. Brutal honesty, that's how I play it.

I had read all the books, reviewed all the parenting style recommendations, and could rattle off CIO, attachment parenting, Babywise, back to sleep, don't spoil your newborn, you can't spoil your newborn, blah blah blah blah etc etc etc etc. Mommy wars have been going on for at least 10 years, I can vouch, and I suspect much much longer, like, millennia.

I don't make a habit of reviewing baby books because I feel like what no one tells you is that your kid not only is probably not going to fit the mold, but that every kid is a different mold. Not the gross black stuff, although I did not clean for so long it was probably around. And probably still is, hey I have 3 kids now. (Pro tip - get new moms food and cleaning. They have 9 million onesies, but they don't have time to cook or clean. Best gifts ever were happy church ladies bringing me food every other day after my mom left and my sister getting me a house cleaner gift certificate.) However, one of the nice things about Help Baby Sleep is the acknowledgement of the overwhelmed mommy brain and the comparison of the first few weeks with a newborn to Ranger school. I like knowing I can say hey, I survived a newborn so I could probably be a Ranger. Okay that may be a stretch, but I could probably rock a Ranger back to sleep if I needed to.

I also like that author Janeen Maxwell tells you to check for and address any medical issues first. You can call your ped and say hey is this normal or not - in fact you should. And if your mommy guy is telling you something is wrong, then get some answers. I say this from experience with my tongue tied child. Same goes with nursing, development, etc. I also appreciated the practical tips as well as the "do what works - every kid is different!" approach, and above all, the advice to give yourself a break! I don't care if you just gave birth or are adopting or fostering, newborns are tough. Adorable little needy love bugs who demand every ounce of energy you have to give. I'm not gonna lie - I LOVE the newborn stage, but that did not make it easy. Just hard awesome. And the rest of it is hard too, but still awesome. I appreciate her use of rhythm vs. schedule, and addressing a common mom fear, which is but will my baby hate me if I let him/her fuss before naps? It is a short ebook but it packs a punch. If you are expecting - whether by birth or adoption! - or know someone who is it's worth adding to the pile. Yes I know there's a pile. I was there too, once upon a 10 years ago time....

Do you need some mommy encouragement? In your sleep deprived haze are you still pretty sure you are a #momfail? Check out this video series and keep your eyes peeled for the Ultimate Homemaking Bundle - sale starts this week!

Please note, while there may be affiliate links or payment for reviews, all opinions are my own. You can't buy a good review from me, people. I am way too mouthy for that.

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